Wartsila North America, Inc. (WNA), a subsidiary of Helsinki, Finland-based Wartsila Corp., reports continued success in repowering marine vessels with new engines.

K-Sea Transportation Partners L.P. , based in Staten Island, New York, repowered the M/V Adriatic Sea in August 2003 with two Wartsila 6L26 main engines.

The M/V Maryland is receiving two Wartsila 9L20 main engines and will be operational in late February 2004.

The M/V Java Sea is scheduled to receive two Wartsila 6L26 main engines in March 2004.

The new four-stroke engines are replacing existing 12- and 16-cylinder two-stroke engines.

K-Sea is a leading provider of refined petroleum product marine transportation, distribution and logistics services in the northeastern United States. The company operates a fleet of 36 tank barges, three tankers and 19 tugboats, serving a wide range of customers, including major oil companies, oil traders and refiners.

"We are pleased to provide K-Sea with the benefits of Wartsila's engine technology -- low fuel consumption, reliability and low emissions," said Jim Baur, Vice President, WNA Marine Division. "We were able to prove to K-Sea that the projected operational savings and increased vessel speeds were valid. Satisfied customers are the best way to increase our market share in the tug and towboat industry; as a result, we are experiencing growing interest in our engine and propulsion system products."

Profitable retrofit

K-Sea Transportation has now operated the M/V Adriatic Sea for six months with the new engines and has realized significant savings in fuel and lube oil consumption. The recorded fuel savings are in the range of 15-20 percent. The lube oil consumption has decreased by more than 80 percent. In addition to these savings, the vessel speed has increased by almost one knot due to 900 additional horsepower. This makes it possible for K-Sea to make five additional roundtrips per year, which increases the vessel's revenue accordingly.

Another positive outcome has been improved working conditions for the crew in the form of less heat, vibration and noise. The Wartsila engines generate far lower levels of noise, heat and vibration, compared with the older engines.

"We are very satisfied with the performance of Wartsila's engines in terms of better crew comfort, lower operational and service costs and increased speed of the vessel," said Tom Sullivan, Vice President of operations for K- Sea. "Wartsila did a fine job of communicating the advantages of their products."